ABN AMRO

Belgian-Dutch financial services group Fortis reported a 16 percent year-on-year rise in second-quarter net profit on Thursday, beating analysts' expectations due to strong banking results.

Dutch bank ABN AMRO is continuing to hold talks with the Royal Bank of Scotland-led consortium which has offered 71 billion euros ($97 billion) for the Netherlands' largest bank in a bidding war with British bank Barclays, the two groups said on Sunday.

Barclays' offer period for Dutch bank ABN AMRO will run until October 4 and the British bank's bid will be declared unconditional if at least 80 percent of ABN shares have been tendered, a filing showed.

Royal Bank of Scotland, Britain's second biggest bank that is locked in a takeover battle for ABN AMRO, beat expectations with an 11 percent rise in profit and lifted its dividend by 25 percent.

Dutch bank ABN AMRO withdrew its recommendation of a takeover by Barclays, leaving it neutral between the British bank's offer and a higher bid from Royal Bank of Scotland's consortium. The Netherlands' biggest bank, the target of a 66 billion-euro ($89.55 billion) offer from Barclays and a 71 billion-euro bid from RBS, Belgium's Fortis and Spain's Santander, also reported a 7.1 percent decline in its second-quarter net profit on Monday.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. said on Monday it received final approval to set up a locally incorporated bank in China, one of the latest firms given the go-ahead for possible retail operations in the country.

British bank Barclays raised its bid for Dutch group ABN AMRO to 67.5 billion euros ($93 billion) on Monday, helped by some of the biggest ever overseas investments by China and Singapore. The bid still falls short of a rival $71 billion-euro bid from a group of European banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland.

Britain's Barclays is in talks with the governments of China and Singapore to raise 10 billion pounds ($20.6 billion) to help fund its planned purchase of Dutch bank ABN AMRO, the BBC reported on Monday.

U.S.-based fund manager Harris Associates has built a $1 billion stake in troubled Swiss investment bank UBS, the Sunday Times said in an unsourced report.

Barclays would make a better merger candidate with ABN AMRO than a bid by a group led by Royal Bank of Scotland aimed at breaking up the Dutch bank, a Dutch newspaper quoted ABN's chief executive as saying on Saturday.

Bank of America Corp. Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis pledged on Thursday to complete the $21 billion acquisition of all of LaSalle Bank from ABN AMRO Holding NV early in the fourth quarter.

Barclays is planning to sweeten its offer for ABN AMRO after a consortium of rivals led by Royal Bank of Scotland revised its bid for the Dutch bank, the Financial Times said on Tuesday.

The takeover battle for ABN AMRO heated up on Monday with the Royal Bank of Scotland consortium boosting the cash element of its 71.1 billion-euro ($98 billion) offer. The offer is above a rival all-stock bid from Britain's Barclays that is worth about 64 billion euros, which has been recommended by ABN's board.

Dutch bank ABN AMRO can proceed with its sale of U.S. unit LaSalle, the Dutch Supreme Court said, boosting the prospect Barclays will succeed in its near $90 billion takeover bid for ABN.

The Dutch Supreme Court will issue its ruling on ABN AMRO's suspended sale of its U.S. unit LaSalle on Friday and the decision could sway an acrimonious takeover battle for the Dutch bank.

Progress made by Britain's Barclays in its offer for ABN AMRO demonstrates its ability to offer the Dutch bank's shareholders certainty and deliverability, Chief Executive John Varley said on Wednesday.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L: Quote, Profile, Research) and its partners seeking to buy Dutch rival ABN AMRO for 71 billion euros ($96.6 billion) do not know many of the key facts relating to their target, documents showed on Tuesday.

Dutch Advocate General says ABN can sell its U.S. bank, LaSalle, without a shareholder vote.

Spain's Iberdrola said on Tuesday it will make a share issue to help finance its $4.5 billion cash purchase of U.S. regional gas and electricity supply company Energy East before completing the deal in the second half of 2008.

Santander will sell Spanish property assets for 4 billion euros (2.7 billion pounds) to help fund its participation in a bid for Dutch bank ABN AMRO , an official at the Spanish bank said on Wednesday. The official, confirming a report in El Pais newspaper, said Santander, one of Europe's biggest banks, would make capital gains of 1.4 billion euros from the sales and wanted to go ahead with them even if the ABN deal fell through.

Barclays has drawn up contingency plans for a big cash sweetener to strengthen its all-share offer for Dutch bank ABN AMRO, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.